The former News of the World deputy features editor claims that former editors
Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson knew phone hacking was taking place at the
tabloid and calls them "scum" for abandoning their employees.

In startling testimony to the Leveson Inquiry, Mr McMullan alleged that his former editors at the now defunct tabloid knew full well about the culture of phone hacking at the paper.

The former deputy features editor went so far as to claim that Mr Coulson, who was later appointed as prime minster David Cameron's communications chief, brought the practice with him "wholesale" when he became deputy editor at the newspaper after working as a showbusiness reporter.

Mr McMullan then expressed his anger at Ms Brooks and Mr Coulson for throwing their former reporters "to the wolves" after distancing themselves from any wrong-doing as details about the widespread nature of phone hacking at the red top began to emerge.

"They should have been the heroes of journalism but actually they're not, Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson they're the scum of journalism for trying to drop me and all my colleagues in it," Mr McMullan said.